When the World Comes Down
by 10pointstoZoe
Summary: Draco and Hermione have no one to turn to except each other. So when Draco helps Hermione deal with life, will the two fall in love? What will people say? What will happen when fate tries to keep them apart? DM/HG I don't own anything except the plot!
1. Hello Again

Chapter 1-Hello Again

**A/N Okay, this is my first fanfc ever. So I hope you like it! Reviews would be greatly appreciated but not necessary. Enjoy :)**

Hermione Granger's summer had been exceptionally…different. After saving the whole wizarding world with her best friends Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, her life had taken a turn for the better.

Or had it?

She wasn't really sure. People were constantly giving her attention, stopping her on the street, and everybody knew her name. She didn't know if she really liked all the fame though.

She constantly had to live up to people's expectations and she was sick and tired of it. Instead of having the quiet life she used to live, she now lived in a glass box without a key. She was trapped inside and everybody could see her.

But, of course she couldn't let people see how much it was getting to her, she had to keep her cool. She wouldn't give the press the satisfaction of seeing another celebrity crack under pressure. She knew she was better than that.

So it was quite understandable that she was quite nervous to return back to school to finish her education in the fall.

~X~

Draco Malfoy's summer had been the weirdest summer ever. Even more so than the summer he received his mission that would allow him to join the death eaters. Probably because that was expected of him. He had known for a while, deep down inside, that he was eventually going to have to follow in his father's footsteps. And he did just that. He acted like the perfect little solider, just like he was told. But then, something inside of him changed, and he realized, his life didn't have to be like that. He realized his parents had picked the wrong side, and he didn't have calmly walk to his death like they were.

The war was hard for everyone and Draco wasn't denying that, but it just seemed extra hard for his family. No one wanted to align with him in the slightest way. They were all frightened of him, which was what his father liked.

But not what Draco liked.

He would never tell anybody, but he needed a friend. He needed someone who he could talk to, or have fun with. But of course he couldn't have that. He was a Malfoy and Malfoy's didn't need friends. Especially when they were serving the dark lord and were certain people would be bowing down to them any day.

So it was weird when he decided to return to Hogwarts and give up on caring about blood status. He was going to make friends and have fun, like he should have from the beginning. He wasn't going to let anyone stop him.

But…it was probably helpful that both his parents were going to be locked away in a cell for the next 30 years…

~X~

Hermione walked into the familiar bookstore alone, letting the quiet chime of the bell take her back to the memory of her first year at Hogwarts, and the first time she ever came here. Back when she was so very eager to learn-not that she wasn't anymore-and succeed. Looking down at the list of books she needed for that year, she made her way over to the shelf she thought 'Standard Book of Spells: Year 7' was on.

She grabbed the book off the shelf, opened to a random page and smelled (yes, smelled) the inside of this clean new book. She loved the smell of new books mixed with fall air. It reminded her of school. Which she loved.

She had been so engrossed with smelling her book that she hadn't even realized someone was standing in front of her.

It was none other than Draco Malfoy.

"Granger, _what _are you doing?" He said with a sneer.

"Smelling my book…" She muttered inaudibly.

The blond haired boy just stared at her with his steel gray eyes. She noticed how nice his hair looked when it wasn't slicked back. His eyes were also something she hadn't noticed before. They were beautiful. They were blueish grayish and very mysterious. Like you couldn't tell what he was feeling just by looking at him. But when he smirked, there was a certain twinkle in his eye, like he was trying not to laugh out loud.

"Merlin, you're weird." He said as he turned around and walked away, shaking his head.

Hermione watched as he walked away. She hadn't really seen him in a long time. She had seen him on the street from a distance, and saw a picture of his family in the _Prophet _when his parents had been sent to Azkaban. They had turned themselves in and they were to be locked away for 30 years.

Hermione could almost relate with that.

After the war, Hermione went to find her parents in Australia, where she had left them before the war. She had half expected not to find them at all. But she did find them…divorced and living out completely different lives.

New families, new jobs, new lives.

She couldn't just come in and say 'oh yea, I'm your daughter and you're going to have to come back home with me and jump back into your old lives!' She couldn't take them away from their new lives.

They were happy without her, and she wasn't going to take that away from them, even if it meant she had to go on without them.

~X~

As Draco walked into the bookstore, he noticed Hermione Granger standing by the exact bookshelf he needed a book from.

He really, _really_ didn't want to talk to anybody. That's why he came to Diagon Alley as soon as he received his letter. He didn't want people staring at him, giving him pity.

He didn't need anyone's pity.

His parents were death eaters. They had killed and tortured innocent though he didn't like not having parents, he knew they deserved what they got.

He walked over to the shelf _Standard book of spells: Grade 7 _was on quietly, hoping Granger wouldn't see him and he could quickly find the rest of his books and leave.

But when he saw her _smelling her book _he just had to ask.

"Granger, _what _are you doing?" he sneered. Perhaps a little bit more vicious than originally intended.

Then she mumbled something, but he didn't really care how she explained herself, he saw what she was doing. So he just stared at her.

She had changed a lot from the last time he saw her.

Her hair wasn't quite as bushy and unruly as it once was. Her clothes were nice. She actually had a nice figure. And her eyes…

_Her eyes are really pretty. _He thought to himself.

_Do you realize whom you're talking about? This is Granger. Snap out of it! _ He mentally slapped himself.

"Merlin, you're weird." He said to Granger as he turned and walked away. He had forgotten to get his book, but didn't really care anymore. He decided he needed to clear his head. He couldn't be thinking about _her_ like that.

_But why not? You told yourself you weren't going to bother with blood status anymore, and you said it yourself. She has changed a lot. _He thought to himself as he made his way out of the shop.

_Because it's Granger! Gryffindor princess. Bookworm. Know-it-all. Best friend of Potter and the weasel. _He argued with himself.

_Maybe you should start looking at things differently. Do you really not like her just because of who she's friends with? Or is it just that you are too stubborn to let go of childhood grudges. _

And with that said, Draco made a decision.

He was going to befriend Hermione Granger.

~X~

Hermione apparated to King's Cross by herself. She located and ran through platform nine and three-quarters by herself. She stepped onto the train and found a seat.

All by herself.

It had never even crossed her mind that she would be going back to Hogwarts alone. She had waited a couple years before she went back because she thought she deserved a break to figure out what direction she wanted to take in life. So while she was taking her nice, relaxing break, all her younger friends that she _could _have gone back to school with were finishing there 7th year.

And so, Hermione sat all alone in her compartment. Praying that every time she heard footsteps outside the door, it would be Harry and Ron coming to sit with her just like old times.

~X~

As Draco made his way onto the train a thought hit him.

Where was he going to sit?

He had no friends yet, and nobody he really wanted to sit with. He knew that he had a slim chance of getting a compartment by himself because they were usually all full. He figured he could just sit with someone but not talk to them.

So he got on the train and walked slowly up and down the corridor looking for an empty compartment, but of course, just his luck. There were none. So he stopped at the last one and peeked inside.

There sat Hermione Granger looking quite lonely.

Draco smirked to himself. He figured he should be a gentleman and go keep her company. After all, the train ride was pretty long...

~X~

Suddenly Hermione heard the compartment door slide open. There stood Draco Malfoy looking as cute as ever.

_Wait. What? No! You don't think of him like that. _She mentally yelled at herself.

_"_Mind if I sit here?" he said in a very un-Malfoyish tone. There was no sneer on his face. He was being sincere.

Weird.

"Erm, sure." Hermione said. She was not expecting to sit with anyone. She was actually planning on sitting all alone, mopping and feeling sorry for herself. Something she rarely did. She felt she deserved some self pity every once in awhile.

She didn't really know if she even wanted to make friends this year. Maybe it would be a good idea if she just immersed herself in her studies and didn't think about anyone else. It would certainly be easier that way. But did she really want to do that?

No.

She wanted to become friends with some one. But she couldn't really think of anyone from when she was at Hogwarts.

But maybe, just maybe, the answer was sitting right in front of her.


	2. Falling Apart

Chapter 2-

The train ride with Draco went pretty well. Hermione had expected them to be at each other's throats the whole ride, but it seemed they _both _had kept open minds about each other.

"So, Granger, what have you been up to since the war?" he asked after a long silence.

That question made Hermione think. What _had _she done in the past two years? She never stopped reading and studying of course. She had started her training as an auror, but quit soon after when she realized it wasn't what she wanted to do anymore. She thought maybe she could be a healer, or perhaps a teacher.

She also found her own apartment near Grimauld Place so she could stay close to Harry and Ginny who had been living together. She got the money from selling a lot of her parents' old furniture that she didn't want. She had also received a large sum of money for helping in the downfall of Voldemort.

Not long after the final battle, Ron and her had started dating. Hermione was happy for a while, but soon realized he just wasn't what she was looking for. Ron never made her feel special. He didn't make her feel any different than he did when they were just friends and that was disappointing.

So she broke it off.

Ron was really upset for awhile, but he eventually got over it and came to the conclusion that they were better off as friends anyways. Hermione figured he was just trying to make her feel better about the situation and not show her how much she really had hurt him, but they made a pact to never talk about it again; to just put it behind them.

But of course Ron was still terribly heart broken.

"Well, I started auror training…" She started to say. How could she tell Malfoy that she had quit? Surely he would make fun of her.

"So you're going to be an auror?"

"Well… I kind of, stopped. I decided I wanted to take my life in a different direction." She said, trying to make it seem smarter and more mature than just saying 'I quite and now I don't know what to do with my life'.

"So you basically gave up and now you have on idea what to do in life?" Draco replied with a cocky smile plastered across his face.

His reply shocked her. Hermione's jaw dropped before she could compose herself. Without thinking of a clever comeback Hermione said "What? Of course not! I know exactly what to do with my life!"

Draco raised an eyebrow at that statement.

"Okay, so maybe I don't have it all planned out, but I have a rough idea…"

Draco raised the other eyebrow and cocked his head as it to say 'Are you sure about that?'

"Okay, I have no idea what to do with myself anymore!" Hermione wailed and let her head fall in her hands. Her thoughts were racing and the stress of everything that had happened in the past two years broke through the dam and the tears flooded through. Slowly Hermione began to shake, as the tears became more heavy.

~X~

Draco just stared at Hermione as she began to cry. He honestly didn't mean to reduce her to tears; he just wanted to get a rise out of her. It seemed that his plan had failed. Miserably.

"Granger…" He started to say. What was he supposed to say to a crying girl? He didn't have any experience with crying females. Most people would probably find it surprising that he didn't really have much experience with females in general. Everyone made him off as this big 'ladies man' or whatever, but really he had only had a handful of girlfriends in his whole life, and none of them really meant that much to him.

"Granger, just because you don't know what career to pursue doesn't mean you have to break down right in front of me!" He said

"It's not just that, it's everything! She cried. The tears were starting to stop but she still looked like she was going to break into pieces at any moment. She looked fragile.

"What's everything?" He asked, soon regretting it when Hermione started what sounded like a very long story.

~X~

Hermione didn't really care that Draco didn't want to know all about her social life, or lack-there-of. She really didn't care in the slightest. She needed someone to talk to because right now she had no one.

"Well, I guess it all started a couple weeks after the final battle…"

She started with the story of how she went to Australia to find her parents, only to discover that they divorced each other and her dad remarried and her mom quit dentistry and went into interior design. Her mom was crazy and out there, which was the complete opposite of her old laidback 'let's all read a book and then talk about what we gained from it' self. Her dad was pretty much the same, but didn't want to intrude on his new wife and baby girl. She felt so horrible inside every time she thought about how he looked at that baby girl, with such loving eyes. She wondered if he used to look at her that way. She felt the hole in her heart grow larger every time she thought of how she had been replaced.

Then she moved onto how distant she had started to feel from Harry, Ron and Ginny. After she broke up with Ron, he rarely talked to her, or stopped by. Every time she went over to Harry and Ginny's place, she always felt like she was intruding. She didn't feel welcome anymore. They always acted awkward around her like they were hiding something. Every once in awhile, Ginny and her went out, shopping or to a restaurant, but she never felt like Ginny was listening to her. So her three best friends were out of the question. Back at Hogwarts, if those three weren't available to talk to, she would go to Luna or Neville. But Luna was on a trip around the world looking for 'rare' (non-existent) creatures to put in her book that she was writing, and Neville was studying to teach Herbology.

That whole story took a very, very long time to explain. Hermione took a deep breath when she was done and just stared at Draco. And Draco just stared back, seemingly unsure of what to say.

~X~

After a very long and silent pause Draco finally cleared his throat and said

"So basically, you have no friends, no parents, no boyfriend, and you're telling all of this to _me_?"

"Erm, I guess. You're the only person who would listen." She said.

"You're tougher than you look, Granger. On the outside, it doesn't look like you're all that upset. But now I can see, on the inside you're breaking." Draco said slowly. He wanted to help her, he realized. He was actually being nice to her.

She gave a watery smile at his comment.

"So, you really broke up with the weasel? I give you credit, it must have been hard to do. You guys were really good friends and every one expected you two to get together, so you four would all be paired off.

Draco quickly realized what he said probably made her feel worse. Maybe she hadn't even thought of it like that, so he quickly changed the subject.

"Well, you don't need them anyways Hermione. You're too intelligent and too pretty for them." He smacked his hand to his mouth. He hadn't even thought about what he was saying, it just came out.

~X~

Hermione hadn't even thought about it like that. If her and Ron had gotten married like Ginny and Harry probably were (she didn't know yet, she just assumed) they would have all been related, and Hermione screwed it up.

She had been so lost in thought she had almost missed Draco's comment.

"Well, you don't need them anyways Hermione, You're too smart and too pretty for them."

Ha.

Now it was Hermione's turn to raise an eyebrow.

First of all, he had called her by her first name. Second of all since when was Hermione, the annoying, bushy haired Gryffindor 'intelligent'? And third and most importantly, since when was she _pretty_? Even when her and Ron were dating, he never told her she was pretty. In fact, he rarely complimented her at all.

"Do you really think so? Does the Slytherin prince really believe that the Gryffindor know-it-all is intelligent _and_ pretty? "

"Yes." He answered rather reluctantly.

"Hmm… I'll have to keep that one in mind, Draco." She said, purposely using his first name.

~X~

What had he done? He had just told her she was pretty, and smart in the same sentence! AND he called her by her first name. At first he thought maybe she didn't notice, or would let it slide, but she made it quite apparent that she had noticed when she called him Draco.

Five years ago, had you told Draco Mafoy that he would start to befriend Hermione Granger, comfort her when she cried, and called her pretty all on the same day, he would have hit you with a well aimed bat-boogey hex. But now, being kind to Hermione was actually… good.

He was being _nice_ to Hermione Granger.

And it felt…

Good.


	3. One Step Closer

Chapter 3- One Step Closer

The remainder of the ride to Hogwarts was pretty average. Nothing out of the ordinary happened after that. Unless you consider Hermione and Draco talking and laughing in a civil fashion not so ordinary. And most people would.

When the train finally came to a halt, Draco and Hermione got off the train in silence. Together they walked over to the carriages pulled by the thestrals. Ever since the war and the battle at Hogwarts, mostly everybody could see them because so many people had seen death during that time. Draco climbed into the carriage first, and then took Hermione's hand and helped her up the wooden steps. Hermione tried to suppress a smile when their hands made contact, but failed miserably and broke out into a grin.

Her hand tingled all the way to the castle.

After the sorting and the feast, the Headmistress stood to give the usual start-of-the-year speech. Hermione found this a little saddening because she had never attended Hogwarts when Dumbledore wasn't the Headmaster. She could feel her eyes start to water at the thought of a Hogwarts without Dumbledore, and quickly ducked her head down to her plate. She kept her head down as long as she could but snuck a glance up when she felt a pair of eyes boring into hers.

~X~

Draco didn't feel right inside. Listening to Professor McGonagall give the speech that Dumbledore should be up at the high table giving just didn't sit right with him. He knew that his family didn't even like Dumbledore, but Draco just didn't feel the same without him there. He always felt safe when Dumbledore was there, although he was always taught to never think that. He grew up being told to hate the old man. Even if he protected Draco and made him feel safe.

He realized Hermione must have been thinking the same as him when he snuck a glance at the Gryffindor table to see her head ducked down staring at her plate. Hermione never just ignored a teacher, so she must have been hiding tears.

The blond haired boy immediately felt sad inside watching her cry. Watching her made him want to hold her hand, or take her in his arms. He wanted her to know he was always going to be there for her. But was he?

Of course.

_From this moment on, I will always be there for Hermione._ Draco mentally pledged to himself.

Draco had been staring at her for quite awhile and hadn't even realized it until she suddenly looked up and her deep chocolate eyes locked with his own. He felt his heart skip a beat and then speed up. He could see the fresh tears on her face, and he slowly blinked, hoping she would understand his silent message.

She blinked back and gave a small smile.

~X~

Hermione found that looking into his eyes made her feel a little bit better. She felt like he was going to be there for her, maybe. She felt like he was going to be a great friend to her, but part of her wanted more.

That was the same part of her that got butterflies when he blinked at her, sending what she thought was a non-verbal 'I'll be there for you'.

After a quick smile at Draco, letting him know she understood the message, she wiped the tears away from her eyes and looked back up at Professor McGonagall.

"-And this year we have a new idea. The staff has decided to hold a Halloween ball to encourage you all to have fun after so many years of war." The headmistress said.

Everyone instantly turned in their seats and started talking. Almost every student was immediately talking about the strange change to the school year. Girls were worried about not having enough time to find a dress and boys were just annoyed about going at all.

"SILENCE!" McGonagall yelled in her stern teacher voice. Everybody knew they shouldn't push her when she yelled like that, so they all remained silent.

"The dance will be similar to a Yule Ball, or 'Prom' in muggle terms. It will start at six 'o'clock and end at midnight of October 31st. Now, I'm sorry to say, but the dance will only be available to fifth through seventh years."

The younger students were in uproar. Hermione could make vaguely make out kids saying things like 'no fair' and 'why not us?' Hermione smirked to herself. She was quite glad that the youngsters weren't going to be at the ball, they would just be immature nuisances. After all, the older students were the ones who really needed a break from school and work.

After the food was cleared from their plates, McGonagall announced that she had one more thing to tell the students.

"As you may, or may not know, we have not yet chosen a Head Boy and Girl yet. So it is my pleasure to announce that Miss Hermione Granger and Mr. Draco Malfoy have been chosen to fill this place. Now, if the head boy and girl would come speak with me, I bid you all goodnight. The prefects will show the first years to their dorms."

And with that new head boy and girl went to talk to the headmistress, their hearts hammering in their ears with excitement.

~X~

Draco could feel the Slytherin's staring at him. He wasn't exactly sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but he didn't really want to turn around and look at them to find out. He knew times had changed, but it had still been awhile since a Slytherin had won Head Boy or Girl. In Slytherin house, it was almost an embarrassment to be thought highly of by teachers and peers.

_Why me? What makes me different than any other student_

~X~

Hermione was congratulated by most of the Gryffindors. Every one had applauded politely when the Head Boy and Girl were announced, but the Gryiffindors were the loudest of them all. Although it was flattering and nice that everyone was happy for her, all she could think about was Draco.

She could tell he was nervous. There was a glimmer of nervousness in his eye. He looked a little less confident than usual. He wasn't strutting as much as he usually did. Now, he looked like he was hiding from everybody, as he slinked his was through a large crowd of Slytherins. Hermione could tell why. They were all staring at him with an evil look in their eyes.

More evil than usual.

~X~

After McGonagall was done explaining all of their duties she began to lead them to their new room. Hermione looked pleased, but kept glancing at him with a concerned look in her eye when she thought he wasn't looking.

The three walked in silence most of the way there. All of them had had a lot to eat and were ready for a good sleep. At first the silence was okay, but it started to get uncomfortable. Draco was going to wait until tomorrow, or after Hermione had left but he decided now would be an okay time to ask.

"Professor," He began and then stopped. He hadn't come up with a way to make it sound like he didn't appreciate being made Head Boy, and make it sound like he actually wanted to know why he was chosen. He didn't want McGonagall to think he was asking her just so she would tell him good things about himself that Draco already knew. So he figured he could ask about _both _of them. Surely Hermione was curious too. Even if it was a little bit more obvious in her case.

"Just out of curiosity, why were Hermione and I picked for Head Boy and Girl?"

Professor McGonagall didn't miss a beat.

"Well, surely it's obvious that you and Miss Granger were top of you class, and I'm sure you will be this year. You both got excellent marks on exams every year and displayed good leadership skills. Hermione also did some very brave things with Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley when you were first in school.

Hermione's face turned red at that last bit. She had probably heard those things many times before, but they probably meant a lot coming from Professor McGonagall. She doesn't give out compliments like that so often, and so willingly.

"But, Professor, not that I'm not please or anything, because I am. But what make me different from all the other students?"

They had now reached the door and Professor said the password (Quaffle. Hermione wrinkled her nose at that. It was a known fact that Hermione disliked quiditch.) and they were all standing outside the portrait hole. After the Headmistress gave Hermione a look that said 'you're dismissed' Hermione said goodnight and went to explore their new dorm.

"Mr. Malfoy. Have you noticed anything…different, about Hogwarts?"

Draco just gave her a perplexed look.

"How many students do you see at the Slytherin table that are, were, or have family connections to, former death eaters?"

A look of understanding washed over his face. You could almost see the gears in his head click when she said that.

None.

Nobody had returned that Draco knew was a death eater or had family that was involved with the dark side. They must all either be in Azkaban or too ashamed to show their faces.

"As far as I, or any members of the staff are concerned, you, Mr. Malfoy, are the only one that dared show his face at this school after Voldemort's downfall that was associated with…them. And that, is an excellent display of bravery. The most I have ever seen from a student that wasn't a Gryffindor." When she said this, Draco noticed two things. 1) She had said Voldemort's name without even flinching or hesitating. 2) Draco thought he saw a glimmer of pride in her eyes as she said this. Could she be proud of him? Or maybe she just pitied him. Draco hoped for the first option.

"Goodnight Mr. Malfoy."

Draco didn't even remember walking into his new room. He hadn't even stopped to look around; he just walked to his bed and laid down without even changing into his pajamas. This had been such a strange day for him. Draco started listing off all the unexpected events of that day.

Professor McGonagall was proud of him for returning to Hogwarts

He was Head Boy

He was halfway-friends with Gran…Hermione.

He was also falling for her.

_Am I? _

_Yep. You are. _He answered himself.

_I've been talking to myself a lot lately. I'm probably going insane. _

_That's what love does to you. It drives you insane. _

And then the next thing he knew it was morning and Hermione was hitting him with a pillow to wake him up.

~X~

**A/N**

Okay, so do you guys like where this is going? Do you think it sounds weird? Does my writing sound too teenage girl-ish? Feedback would be greatly appreciated!

P.S sorry it took so long to update, I wasn't really sure where this was going and I had to figure it all out.

I'll try to leave an A/N after every chapter because I like when other authors do that, so maybe you guys will too. Let me know if it gets annoying.


	4. A Man Don't Have to Die

Chapter 4-A Man Don't Have to Die

**A/N: What's up people? Yes, it's been a long time and yes I'm very sorry. I wasn't going to continue this story, but it just kept nagging at me in the back of my head.** **I feel really bad for keeping you guys waiting for so long because I hate it when I'm reading a story and then the author just decides to never update…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything from the world of Harry Potter! It's all JKRs… so… let us get on with the story, shall we?**

"What are you doing?" Draco yelled in between blows from the pillow Hermione was launching at his face.

"Waking you up! Nothing else worked, so I resorted to hitting you in the face."

"Just because we were friendly with each other yesterday doesn't mean you're allowed to attack me, woman." Malfoy grumbled as he sat up in bed.

"Your lucky I used a pillow, it could have been a lot worse, and besides, how could you even think about sleeping this long on the first day of classes?"

Draco inwardly groaned. Classes.

He rolled over and closed his eyes, hoping Ms. Crabby Pants would go away. But instead she just hit him with a pillow again.

"But seriously, get up. It's 7 and breakfast starts at 7:15. You have 15 minutes to get up, take a shower, get dressed and get all your things for your classes. That's 4 things in 15 minutes!" The bushy haired girl listed off on her fingers.

"Yeah, I know how to count thanks, and I don't need _you_ telling me what to do. You can leave, I'll see you at breakfast." The blond responded as calmly as possible. What he really wanted to say was: _Shut up and get out of my room! _But that's not how friends treat each other now is it?

~X~

_How could he still be sleeping? How could he have even slept at all last night? _Hermione thought to herself. She knew she was never able to sleep the night before classes; she was always so nervous and excited. Wondering what they were going to learn and worrying that she hadn't read enough of the text over the summer even thought she was always the most prepared out of anybody.

After making sure that Draco didn't go back to sleep, Hermione grabbed her bag (packed the previous night) and headed off to breakfast. Hermione felt quite lonely sitting at the Gryffindor table all alone. She felt even worse when the owls came and she realized she wouldn't be receiving any more letters from her parents. This would be the first year she was at Hogwarts and she didn't have any parents.

Hermione ate her breakfast of toast and pumpkin juice in silence until 8:00 when she got up and decided to head off to class a half an hour early.

The halls were mostly silent, with the occasional student who is either late to breakfast (like Draco would probably be) or early to class like herself. The hallways smelled like back to school and as Hermione made her way down to the dungeon she could feel the temperature drop. She was soon covered in goose bumps and regretting only wearing a light shirt underneath her school robes.

The dungeons looked just as they always had: dark and ominous.

Hermione didn't actually mind potions all that much, but she was not looking forward to being taught by Professor Slughorn. When she was in 6th year and he taught potions, Hermione liked him but learned a lot more when Snape was around. Even though he was a git at sometimes, he really was a good man, and teacher.

Because she didn't want to be the first one in the classroom, Hermione decided to sit against the cold dungeon wall and re-read the first chapter in her potion book.

~X~

Draco was not looking forward to potions…Not at all. Especially because that Slughorn man was still teaching them and he just didn't seem like a very bright fellow. Draco actually thought Hermione was knew more about some of the things he taught when they were in 6th year, but he would never say that out loud.

The only comforting thing about going to potions was being back in the dungeons.

He knew it was a little strange, but Draco always found that they were part of him, and he missed them dearly when he left school during the war. They were home to him more than any other part of the castle…Even if they were cold and dark. It really didn't bother Draco that much.

As the boy turned the corner, he noticed someone seated next to the door of the potions room. As he got closer, he realized it was Hermione.

But honestly, who else would be this early on the first day of class? There weren't that many people to choose from in this school.

This meant he had to either turn back or wait for more people to arrive so he could avoid an awkward conversation, or he could go and make up something to talk about with her.

Without giving it much thought, he decided option one would do.

Hermione was reading a book when he approached her, and she didn't even look up at him when he stopped in front of her. Could she really be that immersed in a textbook?

Of course. This was Hermione he was dealing with.

Draco cleared his throat and she jumped a little bit, which made Draco snigger.

"I didn't even realize you were there! You scared me!"

Draco held back his sarcastic remark, and instead chose a nicer topic, rather than poking fun at his new 'friend'.

"So, decided to get an early start on the text book?" he said as he slid down the wall to sit next to her on the cold dungeon floor.

"Well, actually I've already read it, I just got bored."

Huh.

_Well this is pretty awkward. _He thought as silence slowly overcame their conversation. Draco racked his brain for a topic they could discuss but he couldn't hink of anything. He never had friends that he had friendly discussions with before this. Him and his friends usually just gossiped about how annoying certain people were or homework. Or they were plotting a prank on someone. So he didn't really have any experience with being friendly. He had used up all the general awkward small talk that you can use on anyone, like how was your summer and how are you doing. So Draco decided to just sit there either until class started, or he came up with something. But it didn't seem like either of those two things were coming around anytime soon.

~X~

Hermione cleared her throat in effort to make the silence less awkward. Draco probably didn't want to talk to her and didn't want to make her feel bad by leaving. Did that mean he didn't want to hurt her feelings, which means he was willing to try being nice to her. Which was a good thing. Hermione couldn't think of anything she could talk about with him. She always knew what to talk about with her fellow Gryffindors, but this was so different. Hermione thought hard.

_What do friends talk about….? _She wondered

Hermione suddenly remembered a time when she was little and her and her muggle friends always played the question game. It was a little silly, but it could be a way to break the ice, right?

"Have you ever played the question game?" Hermione asked, immediately feeling idiotic.

"Erm. No?" Draco said confused. He definitely had no idea what the question game was. Damn. She should have just kept her mouth shut. Oh Merlin this was a horrible idea, he was going to think she was some stupid mudblood who played stupid muggle games. Well, it's not like he never thought that before…

"Okay, well it's this game that I used to play when I was little where one person asks a question, and the other person has to answer truthfully." She said with a smile, trying to make it look like she was completely confident in her decision to play this game.

"That just sounds like a really not very sneaky way to get me to spill all my secrets." He said playfully. "Have you ever played truth or dare? At least if we play that, I can avoid telling things you don't need to know."

"Sure," Hermione said. She wasn't all that sure that her and Draco were talking about the same game though. Why would Draco Malfoy have played a muggle game? She didn't like the look he was giving her, and slowly started to become afraid of what was going to happen next.

"If you say so…" Draco said with a sly grin.

~X~

Draco pulled out his wand with a flourish, and pointed it at Hermione. He was about to ask truth or dare when she whipped her wand out and had it pointed at Draco's chest in a defensive manner. He couldn't help himself. He just started to laugh. And when he started, he couldn't stop. He threw his head back and laughed for what seemed like ages. He hadn't laughed in so long, and he laughed until his stomach hurt. There really wasn't anything funny about the situation. Maybe it was the expression on Granger's face, or the sound of his laugh echoing off the walls, but something about the situation made it impossible for him to control himself. When he finally calmed down, he looked at Hermione and asked "What's your problem?"

"I could ask you the same thing! I thought we were getting along fine! There was no need to pull your wand on me!"

At first he just stared at her. Then finally he spoke.

"That's how you play wizard's truth or dare…. You have to say a spell… otherwise, the other person doesn't have to do anything. They could just walk out of the game if they wanted to."

"That's _definitely _not how I learned it!"

"Well, that's 'cause you're a mu-muggle born…" Draco quickly corrected himself.

Hermione raised one eyebrow in what the blond decided was a very cute manner. She had obviously heard his slip-up and was going to call him on it.

"Malfoy. I don't really care if you call me a mudblood. I've heard it so many times, it doesn't even phase me at all anymore. I know old habits die hard, so you don't have to feel badly…"

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Of course I should feel badly! Just because you've been called that far too many times doesn't make it right!" He said with a sudden fury.

"Seriously, Draco…" She was cut off by the sound of footsteps coming down the hall. They both forgot about their conversation and waited for the owner of the footsteps to appear. The boy was a Slytherin, she recognized him, but couldn't remember his name. She thought maybe he would start talking to Draco and she would remember, but he didn't even glance at Draco as he walked into the classroom. Draco was staring off into space, wondering if the Slytherins were going to ignore him all year, when Hermione interrupted his train of thought.

"We should probably go in, you know, to get good seats or…"

"Alright." He said as he offered her a hand, and helped her up. The two walked inside, and there was an awkward moment when they didn't know if the other wanted to sit together, but they were both too shy to ask. Finally, Draco decided he would just be a man about it. He sat down in the back, where they would be a little bit more hidden from the eyes of other students.

"Well, are you going to sit with me or not?"

Hermione looked taken aback for a moment but quickly gathered herself and took a seat next to Draco. They didn't say a word to each other until class started. He could see Hermione start to fidget as more people entered the room. Soon, all the seats were taken, and everyone was waiting on Professor Slughorn. Hermione thought it was strange because Professor Slughorn was usually in the room before class started. It seemed to take a very long time, but finally, the doors to the room burst open.

"Turn to page 97 in your books, and retrieve all the ingredients on the board. I expect that you have all read the first couple chapters of your textbooks. We will be brewing veritiserum today, a potion I'm sure you are all familiar with it…" Hermione almost fell out of her seat. She looked over at Draco, and he looked an awful lot more pale then he usually did, and that was saying something. Some other kids in the room looked like they were going to throw up. This was crazy… he was supposed to be…

"What are you all staring at?" A very angry, very alive, Severus Snape snaped at them.


End file.
